Texas Governor Greg Abbott signed a new bill yesterday banning transgender girls from participating in female sports at public schools. He is not the only Republican who believes transgender girls should not play in the same team as other females. The bill is not effective immediately. Transgender girls will have to compete in teams with people of the same sex as the one written on their birth certificate.
Gender identity and discrimination
Recent articles mention that the new bill could discriminate against transgender girls as the sex written in their birth certificate might not be the same one they identify with. However, the bill mentions that public school students have to be split into teams based on their biological sex and not on gender identity. LGBT advocates, such as Amit Paley, CEO of the Trevor Project, declared that the fight is not over.
#HB25, the anti-trans sports bill in TX, was signed into law today—but this fight isn’t over.
The @TrevorProject is here for support 24/7—we'll continue working w/ our partners to challenge this law to protect trans & nonbinary Texans. #LetKidsPlayhttps://t.co/8SE4W1WbzQ
— Amit Paley (@amitpaley) October 25, 2021
Other Republicans, such as Florida Governor Ron De Santis, signed a bill banning transgender women from competing in female sports in high school and colleges.
NCAA has a different take on the situation
The NCAA Board of Governors stated that transgender girls should have the opportunity to compete in college sports and that Inclusion and science are key factors to help them. The NCAA further explained that science had evolved enough to help transgender girls compete in the team they identify with using testosterone suppression treatment.
The board further declared:
Inclusion and fairness can coexist for all student-athletes, including transgender athletes, at all levels of the sport. Our clear expectation as the Association’s top governing body is that all student-athletes will be treated with dignity and respect. We are committed to ensuring that NCAA championships are open for all who earn the right to compete in them.”
In March 2020, Republicans began a campaign advocating that those identified as males at birth should not compete in female sports.